The Last Dance (this is goodbye)
by Claude Amelia Song
Summary: After an eight year at Hogwarts, Class of 1998 graduates, in June 1999. Before the graduation ceremony, they have one last dance as a goodbye to the school that holds in her halls their childhood innocence and dreams. Told from the point of view of four people what it represents for both students and teachers. It's telling goodbye to the child in them and making courage to fly away


**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine, but Rowling's and the song belongs to Cat Stevens, I just got inspired.**

**Practice Round 1**

**Mahoutokoro - Homecoming**

Your **theme** is: Homecoming king and queen - **tradition**

Look at the different traditions within the school system. Homecoming King and Queen is one idea, but there are many others; dances, prom at the end of the year, a graduation ceremony, attending a magical university, or even make your own wizarding tradition.

Try and go deeper into what these traditions mean to the school and faculty

Main Prompt: 3. [Setting] the Great Hall

Optional Prompts: 5. [Song] 'Old School Yard' - Cat Stevens

12\. [Character] Susan Bones

Words: 2556

_" Do you remember the days of the old? _

_When we used to laugh and smile and cry_

_The days of innocence and childish dreams_

_All the things we did, that started here_

_In this old school hall?_

_And we found love, do you remember?"_

_"Do you remember our last goodbye? Spent dancing and drinking tea, pretending to be kids once more?"_

_"Oh I do, I remember, you're the one I said goodbye with, my love!Oh, I remember this old place, castle in the mountains, when we danced under the stars."_

_Hermione's POV_

One thing that Hermione had loved reading about in _Hogwarts,a History_ had been the school dance each year before the graduation ceremony. It was the last thing the students ever did as students in the school before they received the diploma. The dance had been established by Rowena Ravenclaw and Helga Hufflepuff as one last hurrah for the graduates to do together.

Last two years, there had been no dance and barely a graduation ceremony. Dumbledore's death had hurt many people and they hadn't felt like a dance was appropriate and after the war ended, the school was too damaged for a dance or even a graduation. A lot of "eight" years were returning to Hogwarts and surprisingly, Harry and Ron were between them. Hermione had expected them to take the Ministry's offer and become Aurors. But after a year on the run and all the death that had taken place, the two of them, needed as she did, time to heal and to mourn their loved ones. And time to just breathe and be students. Their childhoods were over, but they needed one last time to be kids, just kids in school. They couldn't do that from Auror Office.

That had been a year ago and now, that last dance came closer and closer. Minerva and Kingsley—and Hermione still felt weird to address her Professor by her given name—had debated whether or not to do it, it would come just over one month from the Battle of Hogwarts Anniversary, but Hermione, along with other teachers had argued that it was a tradition that deserved to be continued. And it was a beautiful one. Students got to dress up, and, unlike the Yule Ball associated with the Triwizard Tournament, wizards didn't have to wear dress robes. Yes, they were also tradition, but they were a newer one. Tradition during this last dance was to wear clothes as in the same period the dance was invented, the way Lords of the old used to wear. Hermione had seen the seventh years Gryffindors dress up like that four years ago and she thought it was lovely. All the Gryffindors who had come back were extremely excited, especially the girls. Sure they had the Yule Ball, but nothing compared to this. The Great Hall decorated just for them and the music, the clothes, the meaning of the dance. It was the last dance with the school itself, in the Great Hall, the place that tied them all together. The place where they got the first taste of Hogwarts would be the last as well. Following the dance, in the morning would the graduation ceremony. That's why no one ever got drunk. Everyone wanted to be able to get their diploma. It should be perfect.

Her only problem would be her date of the night. Minerva had allowed them to be together before her graduation on the count that she had been off age for the past three years and there were basically no rules for student and teacher relationships as long as the younger party was the age of consent. But her boyfriend, who just happened to be Severus Snape, was wary of going with her even if technically, nothing stopped them. He didn't want people staring at them even more.

It had come to surprise to everyone that she and Severus Snape were forming a couple. Well, a surprise to everyone but her two best friends who even if they had hated Severus, had known about her crush on him since the beginning of their friendship and Susan Bones. The Hufflepuff had caught them, a week before the Headmaster's death, while on patrol. The two of them had just left a meeting with Dumbledore, basically discussing his upcoming death and had forgotten themselves. It could have been so dangerous if the person who saw them would have been anyone else but sweet Susan, that they never left together again, making sure to check double time. They had to explain to her so they turned round way to Dumbledore's office to decide what to do. Susan had been keeping both their relationship secret and the plan until the end of the war. Hermione could count on her to help. Susan was considered a friend by her boyfriend. Maybe he would listen and be her date.

The dance meant a lot to her. It was part of her goodbye to the place she had called home for so many years. The last hurrah as the founders had said before university. But she wanted to share it with Severus. There was no prom queen and king, like in the Muggle World, but she could be a princess for a night.

She had over a month to convince him to share this tradition with her, despite him already celebrating it years before.

Maybe they could sing and dance in their old school hall, something to remember by.

_Severus' POV_

When he'd been a kid, the last dance had always been an event he looked up to. His mother had told him stories on how the Great Hall would be in festive mode and all the houses would blend together. Each year would be dedicated to one of the houses. Severus was still bitter about blending green with gold for Gryffindor after the end of the first war. But he hadn't said anything, how could he? He had complained to Albus, but never in public. It was one thing he kept his mouth shut about. What his mother hadn't said was that the dance wouldn't be fun without someone to dance with, or someone you liked to dance with. She had had a partner, but he'd died soon after graduation and she'd spiralled out of control, met his father, the rest was history.

He'd told Lily about it when they've met. They had made a pact that whatever happened they would dance with each other. Neither wanted to be alone. Big words for two twelve years old. Five years later, the pact was broken. He'd hoped up to the point she had gotten together with Potter. But he'd known their was broken the moment they both called each others names.

Severus had never dreamed he'd get a chance to love again. And certainly not with Hermione. He'd known she was the age of consent, he'd basically worked her through it during the third, but he had never seen her as something else, until she said Dumbledore had given her something to celebrate her soon coming off age. And right after he'd seen her in the Great Hall. She was beautiful and suddenly he wished she had been the one to share his last dance with. Teachers at Hogwarts had more than one dance, for obvious reasons. Every faculty member had different feelings for this event. Albus treasured for the happiness that it brought to the students, for Filius and Pomona, tears. They cried each year when they broke away from their seventh years. Him, he was indifferent. Or he tried to be. It was bittersweet really. They would toast, with tea, and they would laugh and they would smile, and none would ever come back or spend another night at Hogwarts. And he did. He'd come back and never left. Now he didn't know how to do it.

Hermione, he hadn't told her yet, but for awhile, this would be his last dance too. She was leaving for uni and he was going to go with her. Hogwarts had been his home for so long, he didn't know how to say goodbye. And now she was his home and he was weary of dancing with her. He knew that he had just seven days to figure out a way to tell her.

_Susan Bones' Pov_

Susan had never seen such a beautiful, but complicated couple ever. When she'd found them in their sixth year together, she hadn't known what to believe, but now, they could see they were perfect together. That's why she thought it was extremely silly for him to still not tell her yet he decided to take leave from Hogwarts while she went to Uni. Looking at it, she had a feeling the Great Hall would be its best image yet. All four houses were blended together and ready to go. She was part of the decoration team, even if students weren't supposed to see the decorations before the dance. However, she had seen them almost every year before, with her Aunt and knew the complex process in undergone for it to change and resemble a true ballroom, with all the houses one together. The teachers had needed one extra hand, one that knew what everything was all about. The new teachers hadn't had the full training yet since everyone had over worked just to get the school to open in time.

He had one more day and he was wasting it. It was so stupid. It may be his last dance, but he was coming back in three years and so was she. Hermione had been accepted to do her degree in Transfiguration and Arithmancy at the Massachusetts Magical Institute. She was keen on doing long distance, but he wasn't, Susan could see it. It ate him away, until she'd suggested that he could move. Slughorn wasn't that old to not be able to teach for three more years.

Afterwards, Hermione was going to do a year Mastery in Potions at Oxford Institute of Magical Sciences and eventually she'd come to Hogwarts to do a Charms Mastery with Flitwick. It was a pretty planned future, but it was Hermione they were talking about.

Susan herself was going to study Potions at Oxford, but as her main degree. Being Severus friend had influenced her a lot. The dance for her was less about the visual and the goodbye it meant, and more for the memories. One last night to soak in the room where they all had laughed and cried so many times, to remember the innocence they had when they first stepped in and their dreams, so many dreams had been born and died in this very room and many more will be. Childish dreams, for they had not yet tasted the world.

Susan didn't even recognise the room how it was right now, but soon after the final charm preparations were made, they would make it back to how she knew it and tomorrow night, with a single swish and flick it would be a ballroom. Charms and magic in general were so fascinating. This was one of the best kept secrets in history and only Hogwarts teachers were privy to it.

"You should tell her," she told him before he left, an hour or so later.

"I don't know how," he said, for the first time since she'd known him looking young and scared, like a teenager.

"Just do it! She will be happy, extremely so. I know she hadn't shown it, but she really wants to dance with you this last time. You may have already done this tradition and saw so many students doing it, but she hadn't, but even if you did it won't be the same, won't it? It wasn't with her."

Susan could see him thinking over. She hoped he'd tell her until it wasn't too late. With one last glance to the Great Hall looking exactly as that first of September 1991, she left, ready to never see it again for a long time. But she'd always remember this school hall.

_Minerva's POV_

It could be said that Minerva Mcgonagall had seen so many last dances at Hogwarts that they had lost meaning to her, but that couldn't have been further from the truth. Over forty last dances, and they all were close to her heart, they were all very special. Every dance meant partying with another generation of students, it means closing a chapter of her life.

However, this particular dance was probably one of the most special and moving dances she'd witnessed. It was her first time opening it, for once, Albus wasn't there. And second, she almost hadn't said goodbye to this generation. The Great Hall looked amazing, all four colours altogether as it should be. No more divisions. She'd always remember this. The last time they got to call themselves kids being kids. University was different and each will take another path, now they were all together as they had been for the past seven years.

And speaking going on different paths, she was going to see another fixture in her life go. For the next three years, her Head of Slytherin was leaving and this was his last dance, albeit temporarily as well. But seeing how happy he looked dancing with one of her favourite students, she knew it was a good change.

But it was sad that he wouldn't join her for breakfast in this very hall any longer, and that the last he'd see of it was at the Graduation Ceremony. She felt it was more finite on her side than his. Severus was certain that it was just three years, but she wasn't that sure. Of course she hoped, but she could see that he finally found another home. And he would leave this one exactly as he never stayed to teach. It was a good goodbye.

Raising her hand, she lit up the lights around the ceiling, signalling it was the moment to end the night with the final dance and song in the honour of Hogwarts.

_General POV_

Every "eight" year was living a very bittersweet time. They had enjoyed their last dance, their goodbye to the school. They had laughed and smiled while dancing in a changed Great Hall, staring at the night sky. Now it was time to really say goodbye. After the Headmistress had given the sign, lighting all the lights, she diminished them until they were left in total darkness. A cake came then, through the door they had come 8 years ago. And every one, everyone started singing.

_Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,_

_Teach us something please!_

_….._

And that was how they ended the night. A last tribute before each going on their way, and even if they didn't know it, most of them would not come to visit their old school anytime in the near future. Between them there was a couple, who after a lot of misunderstandings and misery, was finally happy, feeling like prom king and queen.

_No matter where I will go or where I will land, I still come back to this old school hall, keeper of our childish dreams, and maker of our ambitions. _

_After one last dance, now we bow and say goodbye though._


End file.
